The priest married the woman in an enormous ceremony on Saturday.
A 63-year-old priest in Ghana, who’s dealing with backlash for marrying a 12-year-old woman, has insisted that the wedding was not about sexual relationship. A spokesperson of the priest mentioned the woman is predicted to assist the priest together with his “non secular duties”. Nuumo Borketey Laweh Tsuru XXXIII, a non secular chief within the Nungua space of the capital, Accra, wed the unidentified baby in an enormous ceremony on Saturday. Mr Tsuru, often called a “Gborbu Wulomo,” or conventional excessive priest, wields vital non secular authority within the Nungua indigenous neighborhood.
After the widespread controversy, the woman and her mom have been positioned beneath police safety and Ghana’s lawyer basic opened an investigation, as per a report in South China Morning Publish (SCMP).
“The allegations, if confirmed, represent a felony offence for which all individuals concerned should face prosecution,” the outlet quoted the lawyer basic’s workplace as saying in a press release.
Underneath Ghanaian regulation, the authorized minimal age for marriage is eighteen.
However the priest’s spokesperson defended his motion, saying the woman shouldn’t be anticipated to fulfil marital duties till she reaches the authorized age of consent, which is 16 in Ghana.
“It isn’t a wedding ceremony. There may be nothing sexual connected to it. The priest has three customary wives already. It is a customary position to assist the priest together with his non secular duties,” spokesperson Mankralo Shwonotalor mentioned, as per the SCMP report.
Images of the wedding ceremony have been extensively circulated on social media. It confirmed dozens of neighborhood members attended the occasion. As per the BBC, girls who attended the ceremony have been heard telling the woman to be ready for wifely duties and to make use of perfumes to spice up hear enchantment to her husband.
The ladies additionally suggested her to decorate teasingly for her husband, in keeping with the outlet.
The photographs triggered a public outcry by many Ghanaians who identified that the observe was unlawful. Critics have additionally known as for the authorities to dissolve the wedding and examine the priest.